For thousands of years, countless lives have been lost in battles over disputed territories. While the primary, tangible point of contention in most border disputes is an easily identifiable piece of land on a map; such disputes are often far more complex than what can be measured in square miles. Often times, cultural tradition, ethnic heritage, and religious beliefs become dimensions that make such conflicts far more complicated than can be resolved by a simple treaty creating a new border. This is the case in the Jammu and Kashmir region, located between northwestern India and northeastern Pakistan. Prior to 1947, the region comprising Pakistan, India, and Kashmir was known as British India, and was a colony of the British Empire consisting of hundreds of small states, each of which was controlled by a local leader know as a maharajah. When the British left the region in 1947, it was up to the individual states to determine which of the two new independent countries they wished to join. Those countries with Muslim majorities opted to become part of Pakistan, while those Hindu majorities chose to become part of the new India. While for the most part this system worked out well, two areas complicated the transiti
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India has shut down air and rail links to Pakistan, while Pakistan has begun jamming the signals of popular Indian broadcast stations within their country. Tensions reached a critical new point in 1974 when India conducted its first nuclear test of a 15-kiloton device it dubbed a "peaceful nuclear explosion". The first occurred just two months after the new nations achieved independence. Neither India nor Pakistan has embraced either of these treaties, arguing that they are hypocritical attempts by the nuclear powers of the world to prevent other nations from pursuing their right to self determination and self defense. Instead, a resolution must be drafted that allows both sides to walk away from the table claiming victory for their national interests, but also allowing the world to walk away claiming victory for peace and an end to the pressing threat of a nuclear conflict. This region, which became East Pakistan, affiliated itself with West Pakistan by religion and constitution, but not by cultural heritage. -brokered peace agreement that divided the disputed territory, with India retaining claim to roughly two-thirds of Kashmir. The dispute continues to escalate as each country finds ways to match the others newest tactic. Since 1971, the duel has been a stalemate, as both sides exchange fire from time to time, and continue to posture asserting their national positions, but not engaging in full-scale armed conflict. This test triggered an arms race that once again pushed India and Pakistan to the brink of war in 1998, when both nations detonated nuclear devices in an effort to test their capabilities and flex their nuclear muscles for the world to see. India has called upon the United States to condemn the actions of the Pakistani-based terrorists who perpetrated the December 13th attack on the Indian parliament. On the nuclear side of things, many countries adopted the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in an attempt to curb the spread of nuclear weapons and their threat to international peace and security. Simultaneously, Pakistan, which is both strategically and politically vital to the U.
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1468
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6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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